I, Alone
by Little Cherry Tree
Summary: Buffy journeys to find the meaning of her immortal existence only to find the bitter truth that will lead to her ultimate defeat, LotR
1. Part I

**I, Alone**

**Title: **I, Alone

**Rating: **T, by the new fanfiction standards… likely cause is violence, adult content and strong language.

**Genre: **Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Lord of the Rings crossover. This is the sequel to 'I Capture the Sun'. Unlike the fluff the past story was, this is much darker. There is a lot of angst and a lot of action and just a little romance.

**Pairings: **Buffy/Legolas, Buffy/Other

**Teaser: **Buffy journeys to find the meaning of her immortal existence only to find the bitter truth that will lead to her ultimate defeat… never the journey, but the destination.

**Summary: **Buffy has been given a great gift – her old Slayer dreams. Now trapped with the knowledge of a great land to the east, she travels to the east and comes upon a land ruled by an iron fist. But there she learns a terrible truth and the bitterness of her fate. Cascading events are about to change her life forever, but she's not so willing to release the past either.

**Disclaimer: **Joss Whedon and company own Buffy the Vampire Slayer. J.R.R. Tolkien owns the 'Lord of the Rings' universe. I own my thoughts, visions and characters, including all original characters you are about to meet.

**Timeline: **This story takes place about a year post the events in Return of the King. This is far post Season 5 in Buffy the Vampire Slayer verse.

**Author's Notes: **Here we are again. I have wanted to write the sequel to this story since I wrote the original story. This is the story I wanted to tell… I just needed the first story to get to this point.

x-x-x-x

**Part I**

x-x-x-x

The air was still with the sounds of summer. In the distance were the faint songs of the Elves, ever beatific and yet they carried with them great sorrows and loss. Trees parted as she walked, their white branches seeming to bow to her power. Her own heart was filled with hope but in her dreams she knew only sorrow.

The bridge was awaiting her. Despite her reservations of knowing what she would find, she ducked underneath the remnants of the trees and slowly took the bridge. Though the pond sparkled underneath with new life that rebirth could only give, it did nothing to appease her mood.

She heard a whisper, as though someone were standing at her shoulder speaking words of great comfort. She reached out with trembling hands and placed her fingers on the rail. It was cool to the touch and sent shivers along her spine. The whispers faded as she chanced a look at the pool below.

Soft golden tendrils were the first thing she saw, followed by a pale face. She felt as though something clenched her heart as she saw her own features, pale and wan, in the water below. Hopeless, lifeless eyes gazed blankly at her. Her lips were twisted in a puzzled expression, as though she couldn't figure out why she had drowned again. Her arms were twisted, rivers of blood streaming down the slender limbs. Only when her arms dipped beneath the surface did the blood finally wash away. Her legs were at an angle that no living person should ever experience. Even from this angle, it looked painful. Her torso had been shredded, soft bits of pale yellow fabric floating along the surface.

The body floated along the shallow river ere it caught upon the rocks, halting and twisting brutally. She could only watch as those hazel eyes locked with hers though the body was upside down, bobbing, sinking…

Suddenly, she couldn't breathe. The air was hot and stifling, as though she were standing in a ring of fire. She gasped, her fingers leaving the comfort and safety of the rail. Icy fingers clawed at her throat, desperate for a chance to take a lifesaving breath…

"You have the gift… the gift of life…"

Those words were damnable, completely usurping who she truly was.

But then again, this dream was always the same. She heard another voice and spun to her left, her hands falling from her throat. There stood a tall woman who had once been a proud warrior. Though the light had long since died from her eyes, they still spoke of old wisdom and strength as her youth had passed thousands of years before. Her eyes were the color of the palest green glass and with them carried the sharpness of a shard across the pale skin at her throat. Her skin was milky, though yellowed. Her face was lined with wrinkles after years of graceless aging. Her lips held neither color nor warmth. When she smiled, there was no change to her ancient face. Her hair was the color of snow, long to her hips and yet she made no move to push it away. Her fingers clasped an old walking stick, gnarled and homely with graying nails and protruding veins. Though she was far older than any creature, her eyes held a hidden secret.

It was the secret to unlocking the reason why Buffy Summers still walked Middle-earth.

The woman smiled. There was no warmth in her smile. There was nothing there except her colorless lips twisting and exposing the wrinkles that creased her forehead. Her eyes nearly disappeared into her cheeks and her voice, low and raspy, always caught her in the end. "There is no gift for the one they call death," she said, her eyes lowering provocatively, as though ashamed she were about to divulge a great secret of the universe. "Shade and shadow, wall of flame. Neither exists. Neither will."

It was always the same with this old woman, the riddles.

She glanced over her shoulder and saw her body on the rocks, unmoving and uncaring. "Why?" she whispered, turning back to the old woman. "Why me?"

"You already know," the woman replied, reaching out with her ancient hand to graze the younger woman's face. "It is within you that you will find what you seek."

Always the same riddles.

"Please," Buffy whispered, urgently. "Tell me what I need to know. Please."

"I cannot tell you that which you already know," the woman replied again. Her lips were twisted humorlessly and her voice belied her grave face. "You have always known."

Buffy had no answer for her. She needed no answer. "I need to know why I'm back," she said, turning back to the woman. "Please…"

But instead of the old woman, there was a hawk flying straight towards her before soaring into the sky. Buffy opened her mouth to scream in frustration when she heard another splash and looked down in the water.

What she saw terrified the Slayer of demons and former Queen of refugees. "No," she whispered, finding strength in the word. "No!"

A sudden blast came from the water, knocking the Slayer from her feet. As the bridge began to fall apart around her, she felt the pond grow deeper as she struggled in the water. She choked and gasped as the heavy pieces of marble and nameless metal dragged her towards the bottom. She kicked and screamed, never willing to give her life to the water. She couldn't give her life if she had no life to give.

But the water refused to spit her back out.

She was choking.

She was gone…

x-x-x

Buffy Summers woke with a sharp gasp, sitting straight up. She held her blanket to her chest despite the fact she was fully-clothed, but her breath misted out in the chilled humidity of the night before her. As the remnants of her dream faded, she became aware that she was alone sleeping near a dying fire. She glanced out in the darkness, her well-trained eyes searching for the one who held the light of the Eldar. She didn't see him, but she was hardly surprised.

In the two months since they'd journeyed out from Rohan, they had rarely spent time apart. They rode mostly in silence and mostly at full speed. Since neither really required rest, they stopped mostly for the benefit of their steeds. In the few conversations they had, he had politely inquired where they were going.

The truth was, she didn't have a clue.

Their journey had taken them through Ithilien and to the north of Mordor. Black mountains lined the south with wide expanses of dried, cracked ground. Twisted remnants of trees stuck out at odd angles, snarling the clear desert pass. Thin bits of ash still fell from the sky, the last hurrah by the great Mount Doom.

Buffy rolled onto her back, her gaze moving from the pitch darkness to the sky. Through the slight haze that seemed to permeate every single moment of every day, she saw the glittering orbs of thousands of stars above. Through their silent nights, she had started to count the glowing orbs above, but lost count around sixty due to boredom. She really never had been good at math.

Tonight was no different. He had disappeared to parts unknown and she had fallen into a pitiful slumber, resting only her eyes to calm her nerves. The farther east they traveled, the most she felt like she was leading her companion to his death, not that she didn't try to talk him out of it. She had tried to tell him to go back. But the farther they went, the more he resisted her pleas. She didn't want him getting into something that was meant for her alone.

Maybe this was why he left at night; to get away from her incessant nagging. He was too polite to tell her that she was irritating him. Instead, he just took off, leaving her on her sleeping mat with thousands of stars glowing above.

Tonight, however, felt different. There was something new in the breeze, something in the decay surrounding them.

Something was watching their movements closely. And, if her growing suspicions were correct, that something wouldn't leave them be until they reached the hills on the far northern side of Mordor and continued eastward still. Neither one really knew what lay beyond the borders of Mordor. The one who did was Elessar and he hadn't come with them. He had a new wife and country to worry about.

She turned to her side again in an attempt to close her eyes when she heard the sound. Her body froze, perfectly poised. She heard the wind blowing. She heard the horses rustling. And, in the depths of the darkness, she heard a growl. Her hand moved silently beneath her mat, retrieving the knife she kept hidden beneath her body just for this very moment. Her eyes pierced through the darkness, spying the two forms of horses tethered a short distance away. The dying fire was nothing more than lustrous red embers.

Her fingers grasped the cold hilt of the blade and pulled it to the ground. The growl grew more menacing. Through the darkness, she saw the horses begin to rustle, as though they too sensed the danger was near.

And there, in the silence of the night, she saw a pair of glowing eyes…

"Legolas?" she murmured quietly. She hoped his keen Elven ears would pick up the danger or at least those intuitive senses would.

The growl was followed by a low shriek.

"Crap," she hissed, pushing off of her mat and casting the blanket aside. She ran away from the camp just as the being with the glowing eyes leapt after her. It took her a few moments to realize it was a warg. But instead of heading for her, it went for the horses. Once she realized that it had changed directions, she then ran to intercept, but not before she heard a loud squeal and the sound of flesh being ripped from bone. She reached the warg, which was tearing into her horse, just as a large arrow whistled over her shoulder and landed in its neck.

Turning around, she saw a familiar Eldar-lit form strolling towards her, his passive face almost pitying as he gazed at the toppled warg and the horse that lay at its side.

"Took you long enough," Buffy said huffily, crossing her arms as Legolas joined her.

"You were sleeping and I did not want to disturb you," he replied calmly.

"Where did that come from?" she asked, kicking at the warg's corpse.

"Mordor," Legolas replied, staring at the black mountains that rose to the south, blocking their view of the horizon. "And it is unlikely it was alone."

To prove his point, she heard another deep rumbling and spun about; catching several other pairs of eyes blinking in the distance. Letting out a soft gasp, she spun around and stared in disbelief at Legolas's knowing look. He stepped forward, moving beside her with his hands on his Elven knives strapped to his hips. Buffy slipped her knife into her opposite hand, prepared to do whatever it took to protect them both.

It was hard to believe that after all these weeks of travel, it had come down to the two of them and half-dozen wild wolves. She would have laughed at the situation if it wasn't so dire. They couldn't be left with any horses two weeks from the nearest help. Legolas moved to stand beside her, bow in hand. Her eyes traveled through the darkness as she heard the snarls and whimpers of the wargs as they surrounded them.

"What do we do?" she asked cautiously, unable to take her gaze from the darkness.

"We must fight them off," he said firmly. There was no fear in his voice. Part of Buffy wondered whether or not he was ever afraid.

"Us against a herd?" she asked sharply, shaking her head in disbelief. She had every reason to believe she could fight off the herd, but she knew that trying to protect both the sole steed remaining and the Elf who was turning out to be more of a pain in her side than a helpful hand would be futile. There was no way they could all survive if she went into full-Slayer mode. That meant she had to stand next to the horse that stood next to his brother, nudging him with a dark nose, his chestnut coat glistening in the dark light.

Buffy thought about their options. There was only one thing she could do; attempt to frighten them away by making a great noise. Glancing at the ground, she summoned her courage, lifted her head and…

"ARRRGGHHHHH!"

Legolas nearly jumped in surprise, turning to glance at the small, frail woman next to him. Shrieking at the top of her lungs would normally irritate her to no end, but at the end of the scream her voice broke. The scream changed from the sound of grinding two rocks together with the sharpest blades to the sound much stronger and more haunting than he could have expected from her. As the scream stopped, she felt the chills go down her back. Despite everything she had been through, the trace of darkness was still there within her. She held the power of a broken darkness and yet the shrill cry of the Nine still raged through her. Footfalls scampered in the distance and after a silent moment, she released a breath. One of the wargs howled into the distance and was soon joined by several more. They sounded much farther away than they had just moments before.

Swallowing hard, she turned guiltily to Legolas who was gazing at her, his eyes shining even in the darkness. She couldn't tell what was on his mind, nor at this moment did she care. Tearing her gaze from his, she walked over and bent down next to her fallen horse and began to remove the packs from the saddle. Legolas stood only a moment longer before moving to assist her.

"Did you have to make such a sound?"

"If you wanted to live till dawn, yeah," Buffy mumbled as she pulled her bag over her shoulders and rose to her feet. Legolas blinked up at her from the ground before breaking his gaze. "I know it probably wasn't the smartest thing to do, but it worked, didn't it?"

"For now," Legolas surmised, rising and blinking at the horizon. "Dawn is but a few hours off."

"We should wait until morning. If we leave under cover of darkness, they can sneak up on us and I, for one, don't want that to happen."

"I do not blame you," the Elf replied kindly, turning away from her. "Perhaps we should both take watch."

"It sort of defeats the purpose of resting then, doesn't it?" she shot back, rifling through her bag for the few possessions she carried with her.

"Our horse needs rest."

"So did mine… and look what it paid for."

Legolas merely turned and walked back into the darkness. Buffy could hardly blame him. She knew that Elves understood little about death and destruction. For immortal beings, how could they? Their only chance at eternal rest came when they died or no longer wished for immortality. Buffy, though immortal through death, understood so much about death that sometimes it frightened her. She spoke of it warmly, like an old friend who would come to dinner. She trusted herself when it came to death. She had dealt creatures and beings death for years now and it didn't stop with her own. It seemed her destiny was fighting from beyond the grave. It seemed as though fate wasn't quite ready to let her go.

And, for some reason, she longed to know why.

She jammed her knife back into its sheath, moving towards the horse and resting her hand upon its neck. It seemed to calm at her quiet words and solemn presence, but her thoughts were anything but. It seemed the farther east they drew, the more vivid her dreams became. It would only be a matter of time before they reached civilization again.

As dawn finally approaching with a ribbon of scarlet to the east, Legolas reappeared solemnly, finding the young woman curled up near the horse, murmuring restlessly. He felt his footsteps falter at the questions he had been about to ask her. Instead, a listless smile flirted about his lips and he bent down, his cool hand pressing against her warm face. When she stirred but did not awaken, his brows furrowed. His first thought was that someone with an outside influence had lulled her into sleeping. His fears were justified as he heard her murmur. Though the words were not distinguishable, he could feel the pain. Soon, her arm came out and knocked his aside. Rolling onto her back, her eyes opened and stared into his.

"What is it?" she asked quietly.

"Dawn approaches," Legolas replied, taking her hand and hauling her back to her feet. "We should ride north into the forest."

"There's a forest?" she asked wonderingly, turning to the north and staring hard at the tree line a day's ride away.

"Yes, it will be far safer than travel by land. If you insist we travel east, we must go north."

She was about to say that they had gone north before but nothing had really ever come of that except to look at the wasteland Ithilien had been turned into by the Orcs. Shrugging, she took her bag and moved to the horse. Legolas returned a moment later with her mat, which he kindly added to the saddle he had switched from her horse to his.

A moment later, she felt a flutter as she mounted the horse. He moved to assist, but she pushed his hand away. Though small, it helped that she had such sufficient strength to move upwards. Her pitying gaze fell upon her fallen horse and she sighed. Despite the fact that she really wasn't much of a horse person, she had grown attached to him. Legolas moved to her side, his hand quite close to her leg. She felt something inside her freeze and turned, their gaze meeting. She wanted to say something to him about how close he was, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Regardless of everything they had gone through and everything they had done, there was still something there. He was there to protect her. Buffy wanted to laugh at that. He was there to protect her? She couldn't die, at least not in the normal sense. He could, however, so right there the roles had been reversed. She could protect him easily enough. But if he was stupid enough to go off on his own and die… well, neither high nor hell could protect her from the wrath of Thranduil. Though she wasn't stupid enough to take on the entire Elvish realm, she knew in her heart that losing Legolas would affect more than just the old forests of Mirkwood.

She would lose a friend.

Instead of mounting the horse behind her, he took the reins and began walking. She would have questioned his motives if her throat had managed to unstick itself.

As morning broke and sunlight filled the desolate lands, she consoled herself by admitting that despite the bleak view, she would soon see more than this. It had to get better as the road east went on. And on some more. But the fact was there was no road east. There was just this long barren desert followed by the forest in the distance.

There had to be more to this world than darkness. There just had to be.

x-x-x 

Thus ends the beginning of a new adventure…


	2. Part II

**I, Alone**

**Title: **I, Alone

**Rating: **T, by the new fanfiction standards… likely cause is violence, adult content and strong language.

**Pairings: **Buffy/Legolas, Buffy/Other

**Teaser: **Buffy journeys to find the meaning of her immortal existence only to find the bitter truth that will lead to her ultimate defeat… never the journey, but the destination.

**Disclaimer: **Joss Whedon and company own Buffy the Vampire Slayer. J.R.R. Tolkien owns the 'Lord of the Rings' universe. I own my thoughts, visions and characters, including all original characters you are about to meet.

**Reviews: **Reviews for the previous chapter are posted on the website inside my profile. I felt this easiest as it saves me time and it saves you spam.

**Author's Notes: **Very little is known about the far east of Middle-earth. All we know for sure is that the Easterlings came from the east (big surprise there, huh) and that Saruman once journeyed out there with two other Wizards of the Istar. We also know Aragorn went there, but never knew what he saw or what he found. Needless to say, I hope this becomes the challenge and adventure I've been working for. This chapter took forever to write because the element was just off. Just a bit of a warning… this chapter turned out… weird. But it'll get better.

x-x-x-x

**Part II**

x-x-x-x

"So… what do you know of this place?"

After a day of riding mostly silent through the grim landscape, she was eager to talk again. She wasn't used to silence no matter how much she tried to convince herself she wanted it.

"I only know what Aragorn has told me."

This took her by surprise as she stared at his back. "You _know _someone who was out here in the middle of nowhere?"

"You did not ask me," he replied, his tone muffled by his position.

Buffy resisted the impulse to roll her eyes. "Would you care to tell me what he told you?"

He maintained his silence long enough to pull the horse aside a small brook. As he dismounted, she finally could feel her legs again after hours upon hours of riding. "Legolas?" she asked, sliding off of the horse and pitching forward, catching herself by latching onto the horse. Slipping around the backside, she saw Legolas crouched by the water, the water running over those smooth, pale hands. "What is it?"

"Do you not sense it?" he asked calmly.

"Sense what? We haven't seen anything since we saw those wargs and that was days ago," Buffy murmured as she approached him, falling to her knees beside him. "What are you sensing?"

"I feel unsettled," he replied, staring hard at the water. "The feeling has only grown stronger as we cross these plains."

"You sense danger," she surmised, sitting hard on the rocks and stretching her tense legs towards the water.

"Do you not sense danger?" he asked her, pulling his hands from the water.

"I feel something," Buffy admitted. "I don't know if it's danger or just… I think I'm afraid. We really don't know what's beyond these borders, do we?" As she spoke, she was mentally kicking herself. Why was she putting him on the spot like this? This had been _her _idea and she was just… she didn't know what she just was. Guilty? Not really, unless something really bad happened. But she was feeling somewhat unsettled.

"We know a little."

She turned to look at him, eyes filled with confusion. "I thought you said—"

"What Aragorn told me took him great strength," Legolas said, cutting her off. "What he saw were horrors unimaginable, even by the Slayer."

This captivated her attention as she leaned closer to him, their horse behind her, headed for the brook to drink.

"My father once told me that in the east, the land of Rhûn, our people first awakened. There the journey began to Valinor."

"Valinor?"

"The lands founded by the Valar where only a straight road is revealed to Elves."

"Ah, you mean the road to the west," Buffy said, leaning back on the sun-bleached stones.

"I do."

She propped herself up on her arms, staring intently at him. "It's a good story."

"There are those who chose to remain behind in Rhûn and there are those that during the long journey to Valinor even more remained; my ancestors among them. During that time, my people have seen nothing but war and misery and strife."

"That was their choice," Buffy said quietly. "You can't blame them for staying behind."

"The land east is nothing but disaster," Legolas said, glancing at her.

"But in a way, it was the birthplace of the Elves."

"And of humans."

"Then we're taking a trip back to the beginning," Buffy said, sitting up slightly. "There is nothing wrong with that."

"The beginning of our people was thousands of years ago," Legolas continued. "So much has changed since our people left. Many of the foes fought by Gondor in wars past were from Rhûn. Many were Easterlings and some undoubtedly came from beyond."

"I guess I never thought of the east as where all of the bad guys came from."

"Rhûn is more than a land of evil. The land has historical roots with my people, with the Dwarves, with man… but all has changed."

"What did Aragorn see?"

Legolas opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again and stared out over the water.

"Legolas?" Something had to really be bothering him if he was twice unwilling to speak of this. "You don't have to tell me."

"He saw desolate… he saw grief and anger and pain… so many people to the east suffered under the tyranny of Mordor. Without that control…"

"You're worried about what we're going to find," Buffy said.

"We should not remain here too long," he said instead, rising to his feet and looking around. "There may be foes watching us undetected."

The thought of being watched by an army of bad guys made her skin crawl. Brushing the dust from her clothes, she rose. He had every reason to be distant with her. She wasn't forthcoming with details either. She longed to reach out to him, but she held back. How would he react when he discovered the only reason for this crusade was a few words in her head and the image of a woman she had never met? She was going to have to be honest with him eventually as they were in this together.

"Legolas…"

He held up his hand, his posture sudden wary and alert. She turned her head and followed his line of sight. It was then that she heard the distant sound of trumpets. "Horns."

"We must go," he said, riding over to where she was standing and offering her his hand. She took it, mounting the horse behind him. Within seconds they were running again, drawing straight north against the wind. As the sounds of civilization faded, she realized that the line of trees was growing closer.

On and on they rode, urgency apparent in each step of their steed. They soon began to climb, the elevation slowly rising as they reached the top of a hill. Glancing out over the land, she felt something hitch in her breath. Despite the lack of true beauty, she saw something in the land that was lost in California. It was natural. And it took her breath away. And then…

"I see water."

"We must be drawing close to the sea."

"There's a sea?" she asked.

"The brook we found is a tributary to the same river from Mirkwood that flows into the Sea of Rhûn."

"Really?" Buffy asked, staring hard at the horizon. "Because I see water… I think we're following the river, right?"

"It must flow right into the Sea."

"Which would make sense because this place is as barren as the Sahara," Buffy blathered on, not really knowing much about the Sahara. "I would guess that would be the reason for trees."

"It may be dangerous for us to move through the forest. It is likely that it is guarded by dark men."

"You mean by wicked men?" she asked lightly. "Relax… it's nothing we haven't handled before." Under her breath, she added, "I hope."

With that, Legolas directed their horse down the steep incline and into the woods. This slowed their steady progress and again Buffy found herself in the woods. "Didn't think I'd be back here so quickly," she said under her breath. Then she realized who she was riding with. "You must love the fact we're back in the trees."

"I am quite fearful of what these woods might bring," Legolas replied. "They may be fair teeming with Eastern men."

"God forbid I get to look at something other than an Elf," Buffy grumbled, wincing again as the horse began down another incline.

Onwards they rode, sunlight filtering through the trees before all around them fell into shadow. Darkness was swiftly overcoming them as day turned into night. At last they reached an opening in the dense forest near a small creek. Both Legolas and Buffy were willing to ride out the night, but they also knew their horse needed rest.

"I'll take watch," Buffy volunteered as she slid from her mount, wincing as her aching legs hit the ground. If the powers that existed somewhere else were so willing to give her back to dead, immortal life they could have at least given her something. This was her opportunity to break away from the monotony of this journey. She hadn't been expecting excitement or grand battles, although killing something wouldn't hurt. She felt restless when all they had been doing for the past two months was riding a horse. Before he could argue, she took her sword from the saddle and stalked off into the darkness. She heard him calling after her, but she didn't want to be abandoned at camp again. She'd had too many nights like that.

The cool air that breezed through the brambles was refreshing on her face. She tipped her face to the wind and took a deep breath. This was what she lived for she thought as she exhaled deeply and shook out her sweaty hair. Slipping between the trees she ran, resisting the urge to whoop and scream out. This felt beautifully like freedom, without attachments and without boundaries. The only thing holding onto her was an Elf.

That sudden though took her out of her reverie. She suddenly felt cold as she inhaled and stopped, her back pressing against a tree. When they were out moving, she couldn't really think. This was the only time she had to collect her thoughts. This was when the dark thoughts came out.

She could see the face in her dreams. She could feel the ground vibrate as the figure walked towards her. The gnarled, old hand reached up to touch her face. "You have finally begun," came her echoing voice, speaking from boundless wisdom. "Your journey has finally begun. You will find your strength. Your time will come."

"When?" Buffy whispered, her lips moving in the still night air. "When will my time come?"

"You have taken the first step of completing your journey. You alone will find the way."

Buffy found her head spinning with the riddles and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing in a stunning white garden, surrounding by chirping birds and flowering pots. Hearing a soft sigh, she glanced up and saw the bridge. There was a figure shrouded in mist.

Wordlessly, she began to walk to the bridge. The trees parted and bent before her.

Her bare foot touched the first step and she continued to press forward until she found herself standing alone on the bridge. There was great beauty around her. But then she turned around and saw something quite different. Bodies were scattered about the ground and the river that flowed was red with blood. There was a stale air of smoke and smoldering piles of kindle. She opened her mouth to question what was going on when a heavy hand landed on her shoulder. She slowly turned around, coming to face the intruder…

Buffy opened her eyes, found herself staring at an unfamiliar face and screamed.

Back at the camp, Legolas heard her scream. He had sensed the danger for some time but had neglected to follow through on it. If she were in danger, she could take care of herself. She had always been independent in that way.

A hand came out of nowhere and pressed itself over her mouth, effectively cutting off her scream.

"No, no, no, no, no," the creature said, a silly smile showing off gapped front teeth as he backed away. Her scream died in her throat as she sized up her attacker. "We mustn't have that," he continued, stepping away from her. Something lifted from her knees and she realized the person who had attacked her was much smaller in person compared to her. She felt her heartbeat return painfully and she slowly stepped forward.

"What the hell are you?" she asked slowly, holding out her hand as the figure stared solemnly up at her.

"What I am doesn't matter, miss," the figure said in a childish boy's voice. "We thoughts you were in troubles, miss."

"We?" she asked breathlessly.

The scream had cut off. Sensing more danger than he had moments before, he glanced back at the horse well hidden in the grass. Making up his mind, he darted off into the woods, following his instincts.

Buffy stared blankly at the small figure, but before she could stop herself, she began laughing. Loudly.

Legolas lifted his head when he heard the welcome sound of her laughter. It didn't come in the midst of the snarl of a wild animal or the victorious cry of an enemy foot soldier. Instead, he heard laughter.

"No, no, no, miss… you mustn't do that either."

"Why not?" she gasped, pressing a hand to her stomach which had tensed painfully in midst of laughing hysterically. "Are you going to make short jokes? Because that would be really, really—" Her voice was cut off as something launched painfully into her back. She squealed as she fell onto the ground. Tiny fists beat into her back and she resisted the urge to laugh again, instead groaning as she pushed herself up painfully. The figure on her back slid down, but not before two bits of rope was slipped around her arms. One jerk later and she found herself kissing the dirt again.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked, grinding her teeth and struggling to break free.

"No, no, miss, we never kid."

"You are making the hugest mistake of your life."

"Are we?"

An arrow suddenly darted between two of them and they whimpered, backing away. Buffy used the time to break free of her restraints and stumble back onto her feet, backing towards a single tree as Legolas suddenly appeared, a second arrow cocked and ready to fire.

"You will not come near her again!"

"Oh, no, no, no," the lead figure whispered as three others ran into the woods. 'Oh, no, master will not like this at all, no, no, no…"

"Your master?" Buffy gasped, coming to stand next to Legolas. "Who is your master?"

"He would only be worried for mistress's safety, yes, yes," the small figure said, coming forward. In the passing light from the moon high above, Legolas's eyes narrowed as he recognized the figure.

"He's a stoor."

"Begging your pardon, good lord, but I am far from a stoor, yes, yes," the figure said, bowing unnecessarily to Legolas. "But you lord will hurt us if he try to protect mistress."

"Protect mistress from what?" Buffy asked darkly, taking a few steps forward.

"They were trying to protect you," Legolas explained, turning to her.

"They tried to attack me!" she exclaimed. "I know they're… little, but they knocked me to the ground. And they have… fists. Yes, I saw fists." Seeing the impish look on the leader's face, she shook her finger at him. "Don't try to deny it, shorty. You were trying to hurt me!"

"Not hurt you, mistress, never hurt you," the figure simpered. "You were alone in these woods, mistress, yes, yes. We would never hurt you, no, no, no."

Buffy pressed her palm to her face and sighed. "All right."

"The woods are full of wicked men, yes they are. They will try to hurt poor mistress if mistress does not come with us to master's house."

Buffy glanced up, her hand falling away. "So, you're trying to save me."

"Yes, mistress, to save you, yes, yes. Are you not worth saving?"

Legolas turned to her and even in the darkness she could see the warning in his eyes.

"I can't go with you alone," she said. "I'm with my fellow traveler here."

"But evil lord tried to hurt us, yes, yes, he tried to hurt us." There were more of these creatures appearing out of the darkness now. "Master will not hurts you. Master will loves you."

"I don't need love and I'd hurt him if he tried to hurt me back," Buffy announced as the creatures were now surrounding them. "But I'm not going anywhere unless my friend comes with me."

"He mustn't come no, no, no… he holds the light of the Eldar, yes, yes."

Buffy glanced at Legolas, who was lit from within. "I'm responsible for him."

Two of the small men glanced at one another and it seemed a silent understanding passed between them. "The lighter can come too, yes he can. But mistress must hurry."

As the small men headed off into the darkness, Legolas turned to Buffy. "You need not go."

"I think it would be rude to turn down an invitation," she protested. "I'm not going to spend my first night in a foreign woods surrounded by little men making enemies."

"What about the horse? If she were to come down against enemy foes…"

"So, we'll take her with us," Buffy said. "I'm sure she'll be safe wherever we're going."

"I only hope your words to be true," Legolas said, a distrustful look on his face as he saw the small figures beckoning them forward. "I do believe them to be Stoors, no matter their size or insistence they are anything but."

"I don't know what to expect," Buffy admitted as they walked back towards the clearing to claim their horse. "But I won't mind the company."

x-x-x

"What's this? Two travelers lost in the darkness?"

Buffy found herself staring at something that looked like a hobbit. It was wide and it was shorter than she was. The top of his head was still inches below her shoulders.

"We're not lost, but we are traveling."

"Why would a tree squirrel and his mistress be traveling in a land as dangerous as this?" The man sounded amused as he stood back to gaze at them. He nearly chortled at the look on the Elf's face. He looked mutinous and ready to throttle him. The woman beside him looked rather angry as well, but her face softened as he opened his arms.

"You are more than welcome to my home."

"We will not be staying," Legolas said with great effort.

"You would refuse an invitation from I?" the man asked incredulously. "Surely not… do come in."

Buffy held back despite the obvious warmth and comfort that appealed to the place. Legolas stood stoically by her side, refusing to even move. "I'm sorry, but we should really be going…"

"You will not be rude," the man said, staggering forward. "Come, come… I have food and drink, plentiful for my… guests."

Just the way he said 'guests' made chills race up and down her spine. Summoning her courage, she stepped inside. She felt Legolas' presence behind her and his comforting hand on her back.

"Please tell me I didn't make a huge mistake," she breathed to him as the door slammed heavily behind him.

"Time will tell."

Great, so he didn't trust her. She could hardly blame him. Not wanting to be chased down by tiny men wielding weapons which in most circumstances would be a nightmare, she had agreed to this arrangement.

"Here, this is for you, lady."

Buffy felt something being stuffed into her hand. She stared at the ancient looking goblet looking like it had been hewn from the trunk of a tree. "Thanks?" she asked timidly, lifting the glass to sniff at it.

"I require nothing of sustenance," Legolas said coolly.

"You are being rude, yes, yes, yes," the man said, offering Legolas another goblet. "Drink, drink. I will not have my guests starve. Your steed will be well cared for." He sat and stared at them with beady eyes while gulping from a large tankard mug. "Yes, yes… you have come from the west?"

"Is it that obvious?" Buffy scoffed, risking a sip from her goblet. To her surprise, what she tasted was one of the most wonderful things she had ever tasted.

"Your mannerisms are very unique from what we see here," said the man, wiping his chin with his fist and plunking his tankard down. "Come, now, drink, drink." He watched them for a moment longer before continuing. "We do not get many travelers here. There are many who have heard of us… half-breeds, they call us. Stoors, some would say." He glanced at Legolas with great dislike. "Our lineage is far more complicated then that."

"I meant no offense," Legolas said defensively, holding up his hand. "I only meant—"

"No, no, tree-squat, I know what you mean," the man grumbled, his cold eyes narrowing. "We were only descendants of Stoors. We were once descendants of dwarves. That is why we are called half-breeds."

"You didn't have to explain it to us," Buffy insisted, blinking hard as she drained her goblet. Legolas was staring at her with concerned eyes, but her eyes were drawn to the man. "We will not harm you."

The man smiled. His eyes were very cold and there was no warmth in his smile. "That is why your journey will fail."

"Why will it fail?" she asked. She was having a hard time concentrating now. The goblet slipped out of her fingers and tumbled harmlessly to the floor.

"Because you do not trust your instincts," the man said, standing up and walking over to a large barrel in the corner and peering into it. "How about you, master Elf? Do you follow your instincts?"

Legolas, who had not yet touched his beverage, was watching Buffy in concern. "I have."

"Even the slowest of canines can sense danger before it overcomes them," said the man, taking another full tankard of ale back to his stool. "Your mistress is no different."

"What's happening to her?" he asked.

Buffy felt strange. Everything was spinning and she grasped the table suddenly, knocking all that was on it over.

"What you done to her?"

"You foolish, foolish squirrel," the man said disdainfully, taking another long draught from his mug. "Yes, yes, I have called you a fool. Tee hee. Why do you reckon that no Eastern man will darken my doorstep?"

Legolas knew instantly that the unsettled feeling in his stomach was true. He and Buffy were in danger and Buffy could no longer hold herself. She was half-draped on the table and on the floor. A moment later, she slid off completely, landing on her back. Feeling sickened, he turned to glare at the man only to see that he was no longer sitting at his stool. As he rose up, something hard smacked the back of his head. As his hand reached for the knives hidden beneath his cloak, he felt something knock hard into his head again. Feeling slightly dizzy, he spun about and saw the foolish little man beating on his head with his tankard.

"What are you?" he asked, reaching for the man. "What have you done to her?"

The man smiled his humorless smile. "Only time will tell," he said in a singsong voice. "Someone's going to die…"

Before he could respond, something heavy dropped on top of his head. Glancing up as he fell to his knees, he saw that part of the ceiling had caved in. Glancing suspiciously at the man standing atop his stool, he carried a rope in his hand. "I have many ways to trap my prey, master Elf. There is no escape."

Legolas felt his breath catch in his throat. He was quite alone here. He saw shadows moving on the wall and heard the laughter as the creatures moved in. Removing his knives, he stood over Buffy's body and held the knives in a defensive stance. "You will not get away with this," he warned the man in a dark voice.

"That is what they always say," the man said in a bored voice, taking another draught from his tankard. "I wonder how they'll like Eldar."

Before Legolas could ask what the man meant, he felt stabs of pain in his legs and saw that his worst nightmare had come to life. Miniature dwarves with spears were attacking his legs. Lifting his dire glance to the man, he pinned him with his most intense look before he was brought to his knees.

x-x-x-x

To be continued…

x-x-x-x

I honestly did not mean for this chapter to turn out the way it had. I had dreams of bringing this character (Larizel) into the story for quite some time. I just had no idea how comical or 'cheesy' he would seem. I swear this chapter would have been the death of me. Lastly, is anyone else having problems uploading their entire document? This is getting frustrating.

Chapter 3 – Who knows what surprises the half-breeds have in store for our heroes. One thing is for certain… they will never give up.


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